Films

[fsn]

I also give you "Age of Heroes", 2011:  Sean Bean and Danny Dyer (would you believe) in "the true story of the formation of Ian Fleming's 30 Commando unit, a precursor for the elite forces in the U.K."

I would say that as uniforms and weaponry become more authentic, stories just become more dribble.

"Dawn Patrol", 1938 Errol Flynn, Basil Rathbone and David Niven - who was in one of my favourite films "A Matter of Life and Death" (1946) - which may not strictly be a war film, but is a delight.

[mollinary]

Waterloo. As a mainstream film, it  is pretty close to an acceptably historically accurate account,  is great fun, has some fabulous performances, great quotes, and stunning battlefield scenes.   "The Prussians are in the woods!"  "Raise High the black flags my children. No pity, no prisoners! I'll shoot any man I see with pity in him! ". "If there is one thing about which I know absolutely nothing, it is agriculture!".


Top that!   

Mollinary

[Fenton]

1911  about  the Xinhai Revolution with Jackie Chan is a good film, not sure how accurate  it is though

[Poggle]

Cross of Iron. Gritty, grubby, realistic.

[vonlacy]

Perhaps I am at an age, but I am suprised know one has mentioned classics like Ice Cold in Alex, Dunkirk and A Cruel Sea. I enjoyed Stalingrad (German version) and Assembly set 1948 China. Anyone seen Warsaw 1920?

[fsn]

"Warsaw 1920" is very ... Polish.

My own personal favourites remain the morale boosting WWII films such as "The Way Ahead", or "First of the Few". "Millions Like Us" is a little gem. It's about ordinary women and the contribution they can make to the war effort. Not so much was films as social history.

[FierceKitty]

"Come on, darling, come back to my place and make a contribution to the war effort."

[Chad]

'Cross of Iron' is a good film. I might have enjoyed 'Waterloo' more had the booklet issued with the film not shown stills of infantry with bolt action rifles.

'Das Boot' is another good German film.

My all time favourite (although not war film) is 'The Adventures of Robin Hood' with Errol Flynn. The bent sword in the fight with Baz Rathbone at the end is classic.

Chad

[Fenton]

Cross of Iron is a favourite as is Das Boot and the Battle of Britain

I think one of my least favourite war films has to be  The Dambusters. Find it very tedious and boring

[Matt J]

'Cross of Iron' is excellent.

My favourite war film is probably 'Thin Red Line' - (if you ignore some of the Malick arthouse crap) - great performances particular by Sean Penn and Nick Nolte.

[Ithoriel]

For me "Thin Red Line" is so obviously Vietnam dressed up in WW2 clothing that it grates.

Though if we're going back beyond the last few years:

Platoon, Full Metal Jacket, A Bridge Too Far, The Longest Day, The Fighting SeaBees, Sands of Iwo Jima ...

[skywalker]

For my sins I enjoy the following, in no particular order: Kellys Heroes, The Red Baron (2009?), Passchendale, A Bridge Too Far, The Longest Day, The Battle of Britain, Cross of Iron and Defiance 

[Subedai]

Not long finished watching 84 Charlie Mopic which is from the cameraman's viewpoint of a training film being made on the front line in  Vietnam. Old (1989), but for a budget film it's quite good.

[Hertsblue]

For my sins I enjoy the following, in no particular order: Kellys Heroes, The Red Baron (2009?), Passchendale, A Bridge Too Far, The Longest Day, The Battle of Britain, Cross of Iron and Defiance 

Yes, I'd also include The Longest Day (in spite of its Hollywood theme song) and The Battle of Britain (If only for the action scenes) in my list of favourites. 

[Fenton]

Not long finished watching 84 Charlie Mopic which is from the cameraman's viewpoint of a training film being made on the front line in  Vietnam. Old (1989), but for a budget film it's quite good.

84 Charlie Mopic is a great little film

[Subedai]

Yes, I'd also include The Longest Day (in spite of its Hollywood theme song) and The Battle of Britain (If only for the action scenes) in my list of favourites. 

Considering its age, in the Battle of Britain even the models they used for the planes were quite convincing. Michael Caine trying to control the Polish pilots is a great little scene.

Midway and The Long, the Short and the Tall haven't been mentioned yet. 'Flingers on Bonce' Some great character acting in the last mentioned.

[Fenton]

Saw Aces High again recently , enjoyed it a lot

[mollinary]

Fully support the Das Boot recommendation, an awesome film which is a quantum leap ahead of all previous submarine films.  Although not a film for cinema release, Band of Brothers is pretty hard to beat. Gettysburg, for the Pickett's charge scenes alone, probably deserves to be on the list. And before we get the usual 'beards' comments, go back and look at some of the photos of real civil war generals. Jeb Stuart really had been attacked by someone with a paint brush loaded with wallpaper paste! 

Mollinary

[Ithoriel]

Alongside "Gettysburg" you might want to watch "Glory" (1989) - Matthew Broderick, Denzel Washington and Morgan Freeman doing a decent job of telling the story of the 54th Massachusetts.

In a similar vein there's "Red Tails" (2012) which tells the story of the Tuskegee airmen. It got panned by the critics as stereotyped and cliched but I enjoyed it - each to their own I guess.

[Duke Speedy of Leighton]

Glory is great!